Tag: #onelifetolove

Imagine a mighty soldier going off to battle. To his chest and arms he has strapped state-of-the-art weapons. A sturdy helmet protects his head, and body armor covers his chest. Beyond his gear, his mind is set for battle. He has studied and trained for years. He thoroughly understands battle strategy and the chain of command. His body is toned. His mind is sharp. He is ready for war.

Now imagine that that very same soldier is no grown man, but rather, a child, a little girl by the age of 13.

Absurd right? No one would send a child into war!

And yet, the picture of the mental readiness of a soldier, the preparedness of his character – this is precisely what one of the greatest kings in history imagined when he described a young woman, a future wife. Taking great counsel from his own wise mother, this king wrote,

Who can find a virtuous wife?

For her worth is far above rubies.

The word for virtuous here actually means the strength and courage of a mighty warrior. A child – a girl – can have the very same courage to face life as a soldier facing battle. In fact, aspects of daily life and fearsome battles are often alike. Pressure, stress, physical exertion, mental exhaustion – even daily life needs courage, strength, and preparedness.

What’s more, the king says that this girl’s worth is far above rubies. Rubies are one of the most precious gemstones, known for their remarkable color and brilliance. But did you know, rubies are also renowned for their strength? In fact, a ruby is second only to a diamond in strength.

But what gives a child, a little girl, this remarkable virtue and worth? Two things lie at the heart of this girl’s courage and readiness. First is an understanding of her intrinsic worth. Human life has inherent value. How do you know how much something is really worth? By how much someone is willing to pay for it! An item at a market is only worth what someone is willing to pay to have it.

And that little girl is worth the greatest price of all – someone’s life. Jesus Christ, thousands of years ago, died on a cross to pay for whatever wrong that little girl, and every human being who ever lived, ever did. Her worth is far above rubies because of what Jesus was willing to pay for her life, and He paid everything. Thus, she is worth everything.

The second aspect of this child’s readiness is her education. A child who learns to read, write, communicate, and conduct basic mathematics is a child who can change her future home, her community, even her world. She becomes mentally prepared for the challenges that lie ahead, and uses what she has learned as a soldier utilizes his training in battle.

One of the greatest authors who ever lived, Victor Hugo, put it this way, “He who opens a school door closes a prison.” A child’s education is never a waste of time or effort. To the contrary, an education invests time and effort into everything a culture holds dear. As one proverb puts it, “An educated man can never be poor.”

By putting the truth of Jesus Christ, and an education into the hands of this young child, we have armed her with strength. We have prepared her, like the mighty warrior, for battle, and the victory is hers – and in fact, all of ours.

In India, the road to quality education for girls is filled with obstacles.

In order to reach school and continue their studies, girls have to overcome many challenges that boys simply don’t share because of their gender. Girls either are never sent to school or they drop out before reaching ninth grade.

There are many factors that influence a girl’s education:

Have parents who prefer to send their sons to school

From poor families who cannot afford to send their children to school

Asked by family to care for their younger siblings

Attend schools with low number of female teachers

Child Marriage

Child Labor

Feel unsafe traveling the distance between home and school

In response to this dilemma, One Life to Love started an Education Program in 2016, with an aim to educate the girl child. We know that when you educate a girl, you educate her children, her family, her community…her nation.

Today, One Life to Love sponsors the education of 400 underprivileged children, and there are plans to reach 300 more in 2017.

Every one of our students has overcome obstacles to get to where they are today. Anita (photo-center), for instance, has a deep love for animals. She takes care of the street dogs in her locality; feeding them whatever leftovers she collects from neighbors. She dreamed of becoming a veterinarian one day. But as she got older, she started to realize that her dreams were wasted.

Anita happily studied till fifth grade, and then her parents brought home bad news: She would need to quit school and stay home to care for her three younger sisters.

Anita’s Uncle needed surgery, so her parents would need to work long hours to contribute to this expense. She pleaded for them to find another way, but there wasn’t. Her parents tried to console her by explaining that school was “not for her” since she would be married in a few years anyway. This of course only increased Anita’s devastation.

“If you know your what you want in life, but someone tells you it is not possible, then you find it difficult to live,” Anita recalls feeling hopeless and angry those days.

Her anguish, however, did not last long. OL2L heard about Anita’s situation and visited her family. We were able to help them find a very good hospital that would perform the Uncle’s surgery for half the cost. We also helped Anita’s parents realize how important education was for their daughter.

“Now I can focus on my studies. I can even go to college, become a veterinarian so I can help animals. And I will get good pay so I can provide for my family, maybe even send my younger sisters to college, too.”

This February, One Life to Love aims to raise $70,000 in order to continue sponsoring 400 children and expand to reach 300 more children– that’s just $100 per child, per year to provide quality education for an underprivileged girl.